Dr. McManus Is In the House

Is there a doctor in the house?

Yes. 

Dr. Shanda McManus makes house calls and is only a telephone call away from whatever ails you. Call it retro medicine because this is how it was once upon a time when doctors came to your home and spent quality time with their patients. 

Dr. McManus, who is a Fair Haven resident, is board certified with the American Academy of Family Physicians and specializes in family medicine. She makes house calls in Red Bank, Rumson, Fair Haven, Shrewsbury and Little Silver. Armed with her doctor’s bag, she is on call 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

“When people call me I answer the phone. They call me directly,” said McManus. “I wanted to bring back the idea of the doctor that lives in your community. When you come into someone’s home you’re connected in a way that you’re not connected in an office. This approach to patient care allows for a lot of exchange between patient and doctor.”  

A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, Dr. McManus started making house calls in November 2010. She charges a flat fee of $150 per visit that can be billed as an out of network provider to the patient’s insurance company.

“I have found that a lot of people have a high (insurance) deductible so they would have to pay anyway, or those who have no insurance,” said McManus. “There are quite a few physicians who are not taking insurances.”

Certainly, the lives of people today are much busier than yesteryear. Dr.  McManus feels as though she’s meeting patients where they are. She knows all too well that people delay going to the doctor because of a hectic schedule. In many cases some have to take off work to visit the doctor, like those who might work in New York City.

“If I can be more suitable for the patient’s lifestyle they can still get the care they need,” said McManus. “The doctor’s office is set-up to be convenient for the doctor and not for the patient. I am trying to fill that gap”

Dr. McManus and her husband, Stephen, who is a radiologist, are the parents of three children. Dr. McManus’s house call practice allows her the flexibility to be accessible to her children, unlike being stationed in a doctor’s office. She is doing what she loves, helping people by practicing medicine and able to be more involved in her children’s lives, which she says is the best of both worlds.

If you need to reach Dr. McManus for any reason, day or night, you can call (908) 902-3873.